If Oxford's coronavirus vaccine works, officials say UK will get it first
The U.K. government made a deal to get 30 million doses by September.
The new coronavirus pandemic has now killed more than 313,000 people worldwide.More than 4.6 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to a shortage of tests, many unreported cases and the suspicion that some governments are hiding the extent of the outbreaks in their countries.
The United States is the most affected country, with more than 1.4 million diagnosed cases and at least 89,318 deaths.
Here's how the news unfolded on Sunday. Every hour in the East.
11:42 p.m.: The University of South Carolina temporarily resumes classes.
While colleges and universities are evaluating the possibility of reopening in-person courses in the fall, the University of South Carolina is taking a precautionary approach for the winter.
The university has announced that it will resume face-to-face classes at the end of the summer, but only for three months.
In a letter to the university community, the school's president said face-to-face classes will begin August 20, continue uninterrupted during the school's traditional fall break in mid-October and through Thanksgiving, when the university will resume distance education due to fears of a second outbreak of the virus.
"The recommendation to cancel the fall break and essentially accelerate face-to-face teaching for the semester was developed with significant input from faculty, staff and student government leaders," said university president Robert Caslen in the letter. "Our best current modeling predicts a peak in VIDOC-19 cases in early December, which will likely also coincide with the traditional flu season".
8:22 p.m.: A member of the Canadian aerobatic team is killed in a flying accident.
A member of the Royal Canadian Air Force aerobatic team was killed while training for an overflight to thank the front line workers of VIDOC-19.
A Canadian Forces Snowbirds aircraft crashed near the city of Kamloops, British Columbia, Royal Canadian Air Force officials said. One person in the plane was killed and the other sustained non-life-threatening injuries, officials said.
The plane crashed while it was "preparing to continue Operation Inspiration," the overflights conducted to support front-line workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, one official said.
A person on the ground was also injured in the crash, which occurred in a residential area, according to Canadian broadcaster CTV.
5:12 p.m.: NASCAR returns after 10 week hiatus
NASCAR launched its first race in 10 weeks on Sunday afternoon at the Darlington Raceway in South Carolina.
Precautions taken due to the coronavirus pandemic meant that no fans were allowed into the pits and teams were limited to 16 people, including the driver. The starting order for the 400-mile race was also drawn by lot based on the owners' points.
The event was dedicated to health care workers fighting VIDOC-19.
The next NASCAR race will be held on Wednesday at the Darlington Raceway.
3:46 PM: California infection rate continues to rise
The rate of COVID-19 infection in California continues to rise.
California has 78,839 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 3,261 deaths, according to the latest state data.
New cases have increased by 2,046 in one day, while deaths have increased by 57. The day before, there were only 1,857 new cases.
The state has been working to increase testing capacity, with more than 1.2 million tests performed as of May 16, 56,117 more than the day before.
The Gavin Newsom government recently began easing restrictions on its residence order.
Fewer than half of California's 58 counties -- 23 -- are currently in Phase 2 of a four-stage reopening plan. This phase allows for the reopening of low-risk workplaces and child care facilities.
1:17 p.m.: UK to receive the first COVID-19 vaccine from Oxford as part of an agreement with industry.
The United Kingdom will have first access to Oxford University's COVID-19 vaccine if it is effective, a British government official said Sunday.
Oxford has signed a global licensing agreement with UK pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca for the delivery of 100 million doses of Oxford's potential vaccine, and the company will seek to make up to 30 million of those doses available to the UK by September as part of the agreement, according to Secretary of State for Commercial Affairs Alok Sharma.
"This agreement with AstraZeneca means that if the Oxford University vaccine works, the British will have access to it first, helping to protect thousands of lives," Mr Sharma said in a statement.
Researchers at Oxford and Imperial College London will also receive £84 million (about $101 million) in public funding for vaccine development, Sharma announced.
Human clinical trials for the Oxford coronavirus vaccine began last month. The Imperial College vaccine trial is expected to begin in June.
The United Kingdom has the third-highest number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 and the second-highest number of deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University, with more than 244,000 cases and 34,716 deaths.
12:20 pm: Cuomo urges New Yorkers to get tested, demonstrates swab test
New York has more testing capabilities than New Yorkers use, Governor Andrew Cuomo said Sunday.
Some drive-in sites that can perform 50,000 COVID-19 tests a day only do about 5,000 a day, the governor said.
To encourage eligible people to take the COVID-19 swab test - often described as unpleasant - the governor demonstrated a live one during his daily coronavirus briefing.
